I just received the NEW Apple TV second generation hardware running iOS and spent a few hours putting through its paces. First let me reveal I have had a long love-hate relationship with the Apple TV. I was an early adopter of the first generation and actually own two of them. I have tried most all the hacks and spent many hours trying to enjoy their features. Right I said "trying" as I have been grossly disappointed in the Apple TV as a product. I have told anyone interested that I thought it was by far Apple's worst product and an embarrassment to a company that prides itself in creating great products.
So I had very low expectations for the NEW second generation hardware and only purchased due to its low $99 price. I was just hoping it would perform better than the two older ones I already had. I have always loved the concept of the Apple TV, but hated the execution and dire performance of what I considered terrible hardware.
Well the first thing that strikes you when you open the box of the Apple TV now is how tiny this thing is. Boy it's small. I was less than impressed with the specs when I read them, but figured what can you expect for $99, a Mac Pro? Connecting the new Apple TV to an HDTV is easier than ever, as it has fewer options and less setting to configure. Gone is the crazy boot up and stunning and loud splash screen video of old. The unit only has HDMI, Optical audio and Ethernet as far as user ports go. So you MUST have an HDTV with a free HDMI port to use this. Gone is the RGB connections. The video output is only 720P and you will not even find any settings in the menus to change anything related to video resolution.
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